Questions raised after sheriff’s deputy shoots dog

A Rock Island County woman is raising questions after a dog was shot outside her home Monday morning.

Shelby Gosa said her family called the Rock Island County Sheriff’s Department around 6:30 a.m. Monday after seeing two, unknown Rottweiler dogs trying to get into her next-door neighbor’s rabbit hutch.

Gosa said she and her father led the deputy to the pair of dogs. One of the dogs had a collar, the other did not. She said she pet both of them, and neither one was growling while she was outside.

“The officer managed to get the dog with the collar into his car pretty easily, but the other one was giving him some trouble. It was pacing around, it kept walking back to our neighbor’s rabbit hutch; it wouldn’t get in the car,” said Gosa.

Still, Gosa said she assumed everything would be fine, and she and her father went back inside the house.

“A couple minutes later, we heard a gunshot,” said Gosa. “When I came back outside and I saw the blood in the dog’s mouth, I immediately assumed it had bit the officer, but he told me that it didn’t, and I was really, really confused as to why this officer would think that shooting a dog is a good idea.”

We don’t know exactly what happened while Gosa was inside the house. Tuesday afternoon, News Eight requested an incident report from the Sheriff’s Department. It is expected back sometime this week.

Rock Island County Sheriff Jeff Boyd was out of town Tuesday, but he told News Eight that he believes the deputy acted within policy and that the dog was acting viciously at the time.

Boyd said any such incident, though, raises questions, and it will be looked into further.

Gosa hopes that follow-up will bring her more answers.

“It was very heartbreaking, because we have a dog, and I can’t imagine her being shot and losing her, she’s part of our family,” said Gosa.

Gosa said she plans to file an official complaint with the Sheriff’s Department.

50 comments

katie wagan

The chief thinks the Police officer acted within Policy? Even though the police offer said the dog didn’t try to bite him and neighbor pet the dogs. So, because it’s a police officer, we’re going to sweep it under the rug? Why? Because of their position? Because it’s just a dog? A dog that was probably scared and was shying away from the officer? Probably the sweetest dog, but lost their life, because some jerk wears a badge and a gun? This is one of the reasons I want to move out of Rock Island County. I’ve had to call the police twice and in the first circmstance, they lost my call and in the 2nd circumstance it took just over 1 hr, before the deputy showed up. Maybe we need a new Chief!!! Ours seems to be incompetent! RIP poor puppy dog! There are people out here who are shedding a tear for you. So sorry we have cruel, selfish, heartless people in this world and you had to experience it. So very sad!! And to know the officer will get away with it is sick. Well officer, you know what they say about karma!! Tonight I’m going to ask God to show you exactly what Karma can do!

SirBobowe

JennyJustice

The officer did not say the dog didn’t try to bite him: He said it did not bite him. We don’t know what the dog may or may not have tried to do. Nobody witnessed what happened so why all the speculation? I’ve had to call the cops to capture two loose pitbulls in my neighborhood attacking my neighbor’s dogs who were in their own yard. When my neighbor tried to get his dogs in his fenced in back yard, the pit bulls attacked him. My husband ran over to help and they attacked him. They literally beat them back with shovels and eventually the pitbulls wandered down the street, but they came trotting right back and were bent on getting my neighbor’s dogs. Some lady pulled up in a van, caleld to the pitbulls and they got in the van. She just drove away. The cops got with her later and when they followed up with us, told us the owner of the pitbulls was steadfast in her claim that we or the neighbor must have antagonized her pitbulls. I’m here to say that nobody antagonized those dogs. They wanted to kill my neighbor’s dogs and it’s as simple as that. Another pitbull owner defending their vicious behavior and refusing to beleive or admit that when loose and there’s more than one, they go into a pack mentality. I’m sure her dogs were sweet with her and her family, but they smelled blood when they got loose and were looking for a kill. I have no sympathy for pitbulls or their owners who always seem to be in denial about that particular breed of dog.

Amy Johnson

Butch

This officer was… no he is a coward and should and does not represent the good officers that for the most part use common sense… for they would have kept the gun in the holster, and used some brain power. This officer represents the stupid and by all means should find a different career. There are people that enjoy killing, and I wonder if a entry would was checked out. Chances are one would find that the dog was shot while retrieving and not while attacking. Oh please don’t anticipate any reprimand for this officers stupidity . He drug the person’s pet off like it was a trophy kill. This is a clear instant why people do not trust, nor like those that are considered peace officers. There are a lot of good people doing a fine job. It is just sad that there are officers on the force like this Non named idiot that loves to show power and stupidity.
‘

Very well put, Katie! This just boils my blood! (And, yes, I am screaming this comment!) I have a news flash for you, Rock Island County Sheriff Jeff Boyd: THERE’S NO WAY IN HELL YOU CAN PET A VICIOUS DOG!!! PERIOD!!! If that dog was vicious, Ms. Gosa would have NEVER been able to pet that poor lost dog. Maybe you and your officer need some face time, locked in a room (with no guns or bullet proof vests) with an actual vicious dog, so that you lunk heads will learn how a vicious dog actually acts. It won’t even take you a full minute to determine the difference. So, yeah, just keep defending your comrades, no matter what crimes they commit while wearing their shiny badges and crisp uniforms, and keep caring not for us citizens and our families. Go ahead and keep firing your government issued weapons willy nilly. Be sure to keep wasting our hard earned tax dollars on defending us from puppies, kittens, and baby bunnies, because the actual criminals (like human gang members) would require a LOT of extra hard work, which I doubt either of you are capable of!

Voice of Reason

Being able to pet a dog and being able to coerce it into a car with no collar or leash are two very different things. The officer didn’t get bit, but that doesn’t mean the dog didn’t show signs that it might. Showing teeth and growling even if it is because the dog is scared are indicators the dog is becoming aggressive. The cop can’t leave the dog there on the property and he can’t let it run loose in the neighborhood now that it has been aggrivated. This dog should never have been put through this in the first place by being loose.

Katie Wagan

The officer could have asked for back-up. I would think killing the dog is the absolute last approach. You must be either be the cop or are related to the cop. No one in their right mind, with any kind of heart, can justify killing a dog because it won’t get into a car right away. In my line of work, I am around stray dogs every day and have worked here for several years. Not once have I had to shoot a dog, because it growled at me.

It takes pretty much zero effort to fashion a lead out of anything flexible, and even less to get it on a dog that you spend more than 5 minutes coaxing, assuming the dog isn’t feral. I think the officer got frustrated with the dog because it wasn’t cooperating and got aggressive with it.

And Rocko another person who never wore a uniform or experienced a dog who does not like them posts. Idiocy at its best. I am a dog lover, owned many, bread many for hunting and true lovers. Enjoy ignorant bliss!

Excuse me tony, but it is YOU who is ignorant & way out of your league here. FYI, I have worked with many “throw away” non pure bred and pure bred dogs alike, who have been deemed “vicious”. They’ve been thrown into kill shelters and into over crowded no kill shelters, and I’m alive to tell the tales (yes, there’s many of my experiences to tell). This is just rich coming from a breeder. If you really love dogs, you would not be bringing dogs into a world where there’s not enough homes for them. Do you enjoy the fact that you are bringing dogs into the world who end up going on to the streets or right into kill shelters because you can’t possibly place all of those puppies into good, loving homes. You are SO full of it if you try to say that all of the dogs you breed have guaranteed homes. There’s not a breeder alive who can guarantee that truthfully, so don’t even try. I’m guessing that you, too, are defending your fellow uniform wearing comrades. Did you have to breed slave dogs to hunt for you because you weren’t very good with your government issued firearm and needed someone to kill for you until you figured out how your gun worked? I’ll bet so. Dog lover my butt!

Rocko, chill out. The guy sounds like he breeds dogs for a particular, legitimate purpose (hunting), which means he actually cares about the welfare of his females and their pups, their genetics, their early handling, and their training. His dogs probably find working homes — which is way more than I can say for BYBs, who you should really be railing at. Them and anyone who buys an animal out of a pet shop or gets them off Craigslist or buys any kind of ‘purebred’ dog from a breeder who doesn’t ask for a spay/neuter contract, because they’re the ones who contribute to the dog overpopulation — NOT show and working dog breeders.

Its too bad East Moline’s animal control could not have responded, she’d know how to handle dogs. She has responded to thousands of calls and I’m sure they weren’t all “sweet” dogs. Maybe she should train these officers. Shooting a dog that had just been petted is ridiculous. What a pathetic coward. This is just very sadly disappointing. What is this world coming too. Certainly hope he never has to come up by house for a call, my 6lb chihuahua chases after people (she doesn’t bite) just acting tough..wouldn’t want that big coward to shoot her!!!

Voice of Reason

Deputies have a Sheriff, not a Chief. RICO deputies are not issued a gun, they provide their own. FYI: this cop was visibly upset by having to do this. If you have dogs you should know what the laws and animal control/police policies are and make sure you protect the animals you love by making sure they don’t get loose. If people report the dog to police, they are not going to leave the dog on someone else’s property. Especially if the dog is damaging said property (going after a rabbit enclosure). Owning a dog is a big responsibility and the policy in question is meant to protect the public as well as these officers. It is a terrible shame that this animal was put down, but it is the owner’s responsibility to protect the dog. It is the officer’s responsibility to protect the private property the dog was on. Instead of assuming the worst in the cop, why don’t you ask the dog owner or her neighbors how many times animal control has dealt with these dogs.

Katie Wagan

Guess I should have read down through the messages first. I was right. You are either the officer himself or are related. No need coming on here defending him. Any true animal lover, would have been getting bit, or had the dog actually lunge at them, before being able to shoot an animal.

Voice of Reason

First of all, I would never defend anyone who is cruel to animals. I have done ride alongs with RICO and have a family member who works for another department outside the Quad Cities. I’m trying to put myself in the cop’s shoes to understand how this might happen. (Personally, I am terrified of large dogs because I was bitten as a child.) This guy tried to remove the dog safely. He didn’t shoot first. But I imaging repeated efforts to poke, prod, or even carry this dog away from those rabbits may have caused this animal to become defensive. He was probably afraid of the cop. And as much as we want to believe we can domesticate these animals, I truly believe they will resort to natural instincts when under enough pressure. Rotts are an intimidating breed. This dog was 80 pounds and he was excited. If this dog was aggressively going after the rabbits while the cop was in close proximity to the dog, like having his hand close to his head trying to coax him away, he may have perceived a danger to himself. Unless you are acquainted with these animals, you probably don’t know the difference between aggression and excitement. I’m not sure that I would. I completely agree that this shouldn’t have happened, but I would spend my time rallying to get 24 hour Animal Control through cooperation between all departments throughout the county. There is absolutely no reason for sending a regular patrol officer to perform “dog catching” duties without proper training and equipment. If we as a community want to avoid this happening in the future, this is the single best solution we could strive for.

Nobody is saying that an officer shouldn’t do his job and protect the public, or should never be allowed to put down an animal that may be endangering himself or others. At issue here is the fact that the dogs did not show any signs of aggression and was not noticeably spooky (since it allowed perfect strangers to walk up and pet it). There is a high probability that the officer was getting frustrated with trying to get the dog in the vehicle, and he may have acted on that frustration or did something needlessly provocative — such as snatching at the dog’s face or trying to bend over it to pick it up. Because the dog was not actively threatening human lives, I believe it would have been more appropriate to make sure the dogs were confined to the yard and call an animal control officer and wait for them to come pick it up and transport them. Every city should have a number of people who are trained and able to handle animals, and who can more adequately judge when a dog is going to become dangerous or not and will always have the tools on hand to get them under control SAFELY. With the number of officers who ‘shoot first’ at dogs and clearly have no experience with them, PDs need to seriously start rethinking their pet policies.

Jeremy

Voice of reason and Tony….I am not going to say you are both tools…..but if the shoe fits? THIS is why we have animal control and THIS is exactly why a police officer should NOT be responding to animal complaints. We all know most cops cant wait to use their sidearm and the sad FACT is that in most officer involved dog shootings it was unnecessary. A few months back I had a rico deputy try to tell me that my black lab is a pit bull….the sad FACT is that most officers cant tell a rotweiler from a poodle and are NOT properly equipped to handle animal complaints.

Voice of Reason

Well, Jeremy, I agree with a lot of what you said, so if that makes me a tool????

I’m not saying you shouldn’t be upset by this story. I am, too! You’re right that this officer should not have to deal with animal calls, but that is just how things are. The RICO Animal Control officer was out of town and they were unable to get one from another department in time. Unfortunately, none of the local departments have enough animal control officers available to cover multiple calls for service on all shifts 24 hours a day. I wish they would, but even if they did, you can’t guarantee that the animal control officer will be able to handle every dog they encounter.

You have to be reasonable here. These dogs were loose and damaging private property. Two citizens called 911 about these dogs which is the ONLY reason the cop came into contact with the dog to begin with. The sad FACT is that owning a dog means you must be responsible for it. That means taking care that your dog is never in a situation where it has to be handled (“caught”) by ANY stranger. You cannot predict how your dog will react under those circumstances and that puts your dog at further risk. THAT is the takeaway here.

Still, there is a lot of fault to go around here. Whose fault is it that the dog was loose? Whose fault is it that there aren’t enough animal control officers to cover all shifts? Whose fault is it that this officer didn’t have the equipment necessary to handle an animal call? Whose fault is it that there is no inter-departmental cooperation or contingency plan to cover/assist other departments when their animal control officer is unavailable?

Is it unreasonable to even consider the POSSIBILITY that this cop in particular isn’t “trigger-happy”. Being a cop doesn’t necessarily define the person inside the uniform. Stereotyping is wrong whether directed at a person for their race, religion, sexual preference, or even their chosen occupation. None of you know this guy. None of you were there. None of you saw how this effected him. So, don’t add to the hysteria by posting your prejudices against him.

Carmen

why is it that cops are quick to shoot dogs?? freaking cowards can’t handle them? Couldn’t they have used a taser gun if the dog was being a problem?? Then again why would the lady call the police if there are 2 dogs hanging out by her rabbit’s hutch. Why not call the humane society ask who can pick 2 dogs up that are roaming the streets. She mentions how the dogs appeared calm.. why not go up to the one that had the collar and see if she could find the owners contact info. This dog did NOT need to be shot!!!!! I hope there’s a follow up.. as to what happened to the dog? Is he being treated, did he not make it?

Taser guns often don’t have the effect on dogs that they would have on humans. They are built differently and can ignite a scary situation into a deadly one.

But I think it should be policy in all cities that PD officers should not be responding to animal calls UNLESS the animal is posing an immediate threat to life. When they get on site, they should make sure the situation is calm and attempt to confine the animals and then call an animal control officer and WAIT until they get there. Animal control officers are trained and have the tools needed. It’s sad, but the fact is, a cheap adjustable loop lead could have saved this dog’s life.

Bryan

A police officer had a decision to make. Katie, if your child was walking by the scene and this dog lunged towards your child, and the police officer did not shoot the dog, you would be pissed. I know if it was me, I would have no problems making that decision. However “wrong” it may of been, it was a split decision made by a human being who has to make TOUGH decisions in the interest of public safety. And for those asking about animal control, they weren’t available.

DogOwner

eric

Good idea..lets blame the owners for a loose dog give them a ticket for dogs at large. But lets also blame the uneducated cop who had plenty of other ways to subdue the dog, then prosecute him for animal cruelty. Sounds awesome to me..both parties are held responsible for their actions..bad thing is the officer is still alive but the dog is dead…

Jeremy

You’ve never had a pet get out? never had a child or pet slip past you as you open the door? The owners financial situation is none of your business what so ever so lets not turn this into your board for griping about welfare. Sometimes pets get out. County dispatch should have sent Animal control to the ANIMAL complaint. Not an armed deputy who was itching for a reason to finally draw his weapon.

Andrew

fishers mom

I am the owner of fisher! I’m not here to bash or be bashed so plz Dont this is all so very hard and here in the next hr I have to explain this all to my 13 10 and 7 year old as they are about to see this all over TV! Our older rott is an escape artist! I put up a $2000 fence I just bought a 500$ dog run to protect and keep my kids/dogs safe! Unfortunately my older one is so social and friendly he can’t stand being confined..when he got loose our baby fallowed! He was not aggressive at all I have 10children under 16 years in my family and they would and have never been mean in anyway! Many friends And family who stop by..never a problem…animal control officer patty has told me how wonderful my dogs are…none of this matters but I did feel I had the right to speak up and say I did several things to keep them in..unfortunately the dog run was not good enough! I do have some photos of the rabbit cage that is not damaged at all as some claimed if anyone would like to see…the let my dog lay and bleed to death…for Pete’s sake he had time to make a call to see what to do cause he kept going back to rabbit…he was ordered to shoot him..not cause he was in fear or scared…thank u and I hope everyone can understand we love our fisher so much and are devastated..we did not just ignore them getting loose!

Voice of Reason

Thanks for your post, Fishers mom. My heart breaks for you and your family. I know that your baby was taken from you for all the wrong reasons. I suspected this officer was told to do it due to a lack of resources available to deal with the situation. It is an unfortunate turn of events that led to this.

fishers mom

I could see if he hurt someone or got crazy but the officer said he shot him for going back to the rabbits cage! I’d really like to know if he bent down and actually talked to him nice and said come here boy or let’s go bye bye…he would of …he’s a baby and seen a moving animal he couldn’t get to…he was prob excited more then aggressive..the cage is not bent tweeked broke or Anything… maybe the should put a pack of dog treats behind the gun and try that first..fisher was by him and his car several times he just kept getting detoured and sidetracked back to the rabbit…he knew Dean well that dog was harm to no one…they were petting both of them…and to the man hitting him with a 2×4 Dont u think if he was going to get aggressive that would of been the time…but he didn’t!

Katie Wagan

Fishers mom ~
I’m so sorry for your loss… and so sorry Fisher had to endure so much hatred from such horrible people. It just goes to show why we have to keep our babies indoors. There are too many horrible people in this world, that think animals are disposable. My friends and I were in tears over this story. We know the truth about Fisher and as a fellow animal lover and owner, we know all too well how animals can escape outside. They’re a lot faster than I am. It’s just too bad that people can’t see the life in an animal. They have feelings just like Humans. I’m not sure how that officer can live with himself after that. They seem to become so cold in that job.

If I were you, I would try to file a complaint against the officer, like the neighbor lady is going to. Show some video footage or pictures of how Fisher was. Somehow, someone needs to keep this officer (and others) from being able to do this again. I would be happy to help, if there’s anything I can do.

Katie Wagan

Someone said earlier that you can call an Animal Shelter for help. That is true. There are some shelters that will help in this type of situation. My cousin called the no kill shelter in Downtown Moline, after seeing a cat get hit on the road and a lady from the shelter, came and took the cat to the shelter. I’m sure they would come get a dog as well.

fishers mom

my husband and I went and picked Fisher up this morning and took him out to our property nearby and the incident and buried him by our pondthank you very much though my boys are going to be devastated when I te them an officer took there sidekick…so unreal! I will pursue this as much as I can…to the officer you know as well as we do you was wrong and murdered and made my baby suffer!

JWLOWE

To Fishers Mom and family, I am in tears for you and my heart aches for you. I did not know Fisher, my loss, but I will never forget him. It is sad that this kind of cruelty or any other kind flourishes in this country. The people who can Execute any loving animal are truly sick people; And in no way should be trusted with anyone’s safety. That goes for the dispatcher that told the deputy to shoot. In this mentality, I guess if my child didn’t get in his car when he wanted him to, he/she should be shot too, God with a gun?
To the officer and any other officers who think of killing someone’s pet, think first of how you would feel if someone did that to one of your family members. My dog is no different than my child, and I protect both the same, with all of life.
What has happened to human kind, I was taught to honor and respect life in all forms especially those dependent on us to care for them and their safety.
If there is any lawyers (pro-bono) who don’t mind bucking the system, I’m sure that some law’s were broken here, at least some sort of animal cruelty law, unnecessary or dangerous discharge of a firearm. Anything to make the powers that be think about what happened.

fishers mom

yes I know we went and picked her up and my husband wanted to know where they shot him because clearly it wasn’t a cracked pot killed him instantly and my husband said it appeared he was shot in the cheek and that the bullet exited through his mouth it was completely inhumane and I hope he got the punishment very bad for letting him suffer and killing him wrongfullythere will be more to come of this I will try to keep posted as many people that will be involved with all of this will be the better too hopefully prevent this from happening to someone else’s pet friend

Katie Wagan

I just seen the news again. I can’t watch that anymore. The officer shot Fisher through the side of the face? The officer can’t even shot at close range? Then the officers let the dog just lay there and bleed to death? No one can convince me that those officers are not the coldest people I’ve ever met. I would give anything to do unto those officers, as they did to poor Fisher. This is just one example of why officers are given a bad name. They’re suppose to help, not hurt. I hope that Officer gets the book thrown at him!!!

To Mr Officer ~ Your friends and family now know what kind of person you are!!! Everyone who talks to you, will be thinking in the back of their head, what a horrible person you are! I know I would.

katizmy5

katie wagan

Katizmys – what a horrible person you must be, to come on here and say such horrible things. My family and I have had pit bulls all of our lives and they’ve been nothing but sweet, loving dogs. It’s the people who train them to fight and be aggressive, that are to blame for bad behavior. Wouldn’t you be, if you were starved, kept in a confined cage, beaten and put in a ring with vicious animals, that attack you??? I would enjoy watching you go through that!! Oh and before you throw out accusations as to the type of people who own pits, my pit has his own bedroom and loves to run on our 75 acres of land that we own.

fishers mom

Daisy Dreams

Fisher’s Mom. I am sorry you put that much money into attempted containment. I’m sure you feel grief over your loss and I am sorry for that. It still does not absolve you from your responsibility to keep your animals in your yard. Would everyone be blaming a driver if they had hit and killed your dog? Response time of another officer or animal control could have been very long considering that there may have been other officers on other calls. Really Ratt. Are you that jaded? I actually laughed at that erroneous statement. The reality is if we are to become responsible for a pet we must maintain it’s health and welfare. A loose cat, dog, horse or cow are subject to a myriad of dangers. That is not and never will be responsible animal ownership.

katie wagan

Daisy dreams – Are you seriously that cold hearted? The owners are probably going through enough pain, without people like you, putting the blame on them. You must not have ever owned a pet. I’m around animals all day and have my own…..they all want to go outside and play, especially in beautiful weather. Some animals are just more intelligent about finding ways to get out. Regardless, animals find ways to get out. What is an owner suppose to do? Keep animals locked in a cage 24 hours a day? The owners did not intentionally let their dogs out. Accidents happen. What that officer did was not an accident. It was in-humane and he needs to be help accountable for it. If you watch the video and look at the picture kwqc has on their website, you can put the pieces together of how in-humane this really was. I cried most of last night, from watching this story, the pit pull dying in the cage and the chihuaha that was left in a cage. I wonder what this world is coming to. There are so many selfish and cold hearted people walking among us. People who can kill animals, with no remorse. People who can own their animals for years and then just get rid of them, like they were just some trash. Only to have those pets go in to an animal kill shelter, get depressed from being abandoned and be put to sleep or die from starvation. This is what happens when God is not in people’s lives. They have no conscience, only selfishness!!

fishers mom

I am not blaming anyone for my dog being loose I am blaming an officer for letting a dog who should of never been shot bleed to death for 15 minutes and to top it off to drag him from the yard after being shot to bleed out in his place of choice! I will not post here anymore as bothers me..the people who can defend this are sick and just as inhumane and should never have a pet! And people make mistakes as some say for the cop well so did i took my eyes off fisher for a second..shoot me..bye

Bryan

Did the officer know your dog? Probably not. The officer said your dog showed aggression. Maybe you should blame the lady that called the Police. If they were so friendly, why didnt she just call them over. Was she initially afraid because of the breed? If she would of minded her own business, would the police of even showed up? Would your dogs have eaten the rabbits? The rabbits are probably a pet of someone. Put a “what if” scenario out there. Instead of a Rabbit, what if it was a small child eating a sandwich? FYI, if I spent that kind of money on a fence and my dog got out, they would have some explaining to do. Cop haters doing what they do best. Hating on the cops for doing their job.

eric

fishers mom

Too funny…what if the cop would of used a treat… what If he would of u the rope n pole in the first place instead of after shooting him…what if he pepper sprayed him first…what if he let fisher bark at the rabbit till animal control got there…plz don’t what if me…the sheriff who said they shot fisher said it was because he showed aggression to a rabbit in a cage!